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We like things nice and simple. Good and evil. Heroes and villains. Most of the time, theyre not what we think they are.?

This line of timeless truth can be heard near the beginning of Clint Eastwoods hauntingly soulful Flags of Our Fathers,? which examines the mythology and personal costs of heroism. The movie follows the six men featured in the iconic flag-raising photo at Iwo Jima, one of the bloodiest battles fought by America during World War II, focusing on the three survivors and how they dealt with the mantle of hero? during a subsequent bond-raising tour.

Eastwoods astounding film, which arrives in theaters Oct. 20, works on a number of levels its a history lesson, war spectacular and compassionate look at the horrors of battle and the how those horrors never leave those who witnessed them.

Its also a look at how the United States government used Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthals almost accidental photograph as a way to rally Americans into digging deep to buy bonds to keep the war machine oiled and funded. People who saw Rosenthals photo splashed across the front pages thought the flag planting meant victory. The reality: There was still another month of fighting ahead and three of the flag-raisers never made it home.

Eastwood and Flags? writers Paul Haggis and William Broyles, Jr. dont make any judgments on the governments fabricating and myth-making. As one military P.R. guy put it to the flag-raisers: You dont want your buddies throwing rocks, do you?? At the same time, the filmmakers dont shy away from showing the price families and soldiers pay when the truth is steam-rolled in service of a cause.

Talking to Eastwood last weekend, I asked him if he was prepared to have Flags? connected to the current war in Iraq. All wars have to be sold,? he replied. Its just easier to justify the hypocrisy sometimes.?

The experience of Flags of Our Fathers? will likely only be deepened when its companion piece, Letters From Iwo Jima,? comes out next February. Letters? will tell the Iwo Jima story from the perspective of the Japanese soldiers forced to defend the island to their death. For these young men, the battle ended in one of two ways being killed by an American or pulling the pin in a grenade and killing yourself.

On its own, Flags of Our Fathers? continues Eastwoods run of artistic brilliance. It is a masterpiece of tremendous power and spiritual beauty, a movie not to be missed.

You hear critics toss around the phrase worth the price of admission alone? too often. And far be it from me to recommend that you throw s good money at the bad movie that is Brian De Palmas The Black Dahlia.?

But there is the performance of Fiona Shaw to consider, which means that you should put Dahlia? in your Neflix queue. You wont have to wait long. The movie will be out of theaters and on DVD in a matter of weeks.

Shaw is only in two scenes. I cant even post a photo of her from the movie, even though the Universal press kit offers a whopping 34 images, mostly of Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson and Aaron Eckhart. No one will remember them years make that weeks from now.

Shaw, however, has punched her ticket to destination of camp classic.?

Now it should be noted that Shaw is a classically trained actress, a darling of the British stage and a woman known for pushing the extremes in acting. That makes her a perfect fit for what De Palma asks of her here, which is basically to make like Gloria Swanson in Sunset Blvd.?

That she does and more. Shaws first scene takes place at a family dinner table. She plays Hilary Swanks pill-popping mom, a two-fisted drinker downing a glass of wine with one hand and a double shot of bourbon in the other. You can see why the woman is unhinged shes married to a loudmouth criminal, necessitating a 24-hour regimen of booze and anti-depressants just to maintain the will to live. And even thats not working.

Shaws first scene lasts about two, three minutes and after she lurches out of the picture, many people in my Manns Chinese audience applauded, recognizing they were witness to film history.

And when Shaw shows up later in the movie, she somehow tops herself. More I cannot divulge. You have to see it for yourself. Its not worth the price of admission. But its proof, to paraphrase the great Norma Desmond, that Shaw is big. Its just her movie that is small.